1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a portable, cargo-retaining header wall for use in a freight container such as a truck trailer or railroad boxcar and which has numerous advantages including light weight, convenience, and reliability in preventing shifting of cargo beyond the header wall. More particularly, this invention is concerned with a header wall having a lattice structure of a plurality of interconnected spaced bars, a jacking member, and a driving assembly mounted to the lattice for receiving and advancing the jacking member into tight-fitting engagement with an adjacent container wall.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Cargo in a freight container may shift or fall during transit of the container; this is particularly true in a container only partially loaded. Such shifting and falling may damage the cargo or the container walls and may create a safety hazard if the cargo load rapidly shifts forward during a deceleration of the container. Additionally, cargo shifting may disturb the loading order of the cargo requiring additional labor expense to restack or reorder the cargo. In a situation where pieces of cargo are intended for different destinations, cargo shifting may mix up the loading arrangement and cause some cargo pieces to be misrouted or even lost by causing the pieces to be unloaded at the wrong location or not unloaded at the correct location, all of which causes additional expense to correct.
Devices in use to prevent cargo shifting include chains strung between container walls across the face of a cargo load or wood slats nailed to container walls to hold the cargo in place. These old solutions to cargo shifting problems achieve less than desired effectiveness or require excessive labor and material expense.